


Colour Code

by Molnija



Category: Free!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Blogging, Fluff, Getting Together, In a way, M/M, POV Alternating, Semi-canonverse, as slow-burn as a 7 chapter fic can get, look just roll with it, rated t for swearing and not much else, tags will be updated as the story goes on!, the ikhy coffee shop au they deserve
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-13
Updated: 2018-10-13
Packaged: 2019-07-29 19:03:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,551
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16270430
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Molnija/pseuds/Molnija
Summary: Ikuya really just wanted a peaceful time without interruptions at his part-time job. He never asked for Asahi to keep getting into arguments with the new regular, for Kisumi to find all of that hilarious instead of helping him keep them quiet before they scare away the other customers, or to fall in love.Hiyori is mostly just here because the coffee is good, the staff are nice, and arguing with Asahi is fun. He wouldn't have expected the one place he picked to just casually go to instead of dissect on his blog to be the one that ends up important to him in more ways than one.In this ordinary place at an ordinary time, perhaps the two can write a not-so-ordinary story.





	Colour Code

**Author's Note:**

> I don't really know where this came from. it was just suddenly there. maybe it's because the ikhy tag doesn't have a coffee shop AU yet and that is a CRIME I mean we're dealing with Hiyori that's his whole THING
> 
> it's a very simple, straightforward AU that doesn't aim to do much more than to give you floofy feelings and perhaps a laugh (that's why writing the summary took ages and I still don't like it). if it does that, it succeeded! so if you're looking for drama and pain, this is not the place. but the ikhy tag is full of drama and pain, so I'm sure you'll find something to your liking. it's also not gonna be long, but you can already tell that by the chapter count.
> 
> the "semi-canonverse" I was talking about in the tags is probably gonna become clear once you actually read it, for now just know that I switched a lot of schools & relationships & careers around (for example, Asahi/Kisumi still went to the same junior high but the rest of the Iwachuu team didn't, some of them don't do competitive swimming but some do, etc) but it's all set in pretty much the same general location of canon. does that make sense? it's not as complicated as it sounds, haha
> 
> you can blame the café blogging aspect on the Hiyori Protection Squad and that's pretty much all I have left to say ... I don't have an update schedule or anything so I won't promise anything regarding speed, especially since I've got a bunch of other things to write too, but I'll do my best! ganbaruby!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [I made a relationship chart for ch1 for no discernible reason other than that I like relationship charts](https://u.cubeupload.com/nija/relationshipchart.png)
> 
> AO3 refuses to let me justify this and it's driving me up the wall I hope I can fix that soon UGH. what a way to start ... //e: it worked on mobile of all things, finally it looks good
> 
> writing a non-depressed Ikuya is actually really fun. he's just doing his best. and tired. please give him a break
> 
> anyway it's 4:08am and I am ready to just. go to bed. so I will. good night!

He still hasn’t found a person to blame all this on, so he’ll just blame it on Kisumi for now.

Kisumi technically has nothing to do with it, but he’s the only one available Ikuya feels confident in blaming. The most logical alternative would probably be Nao, and if you blame anything at all on Nao, there’s a high chance you don’t have a soul, so Kisumi will have to do.

Of course, he’s fully aware that maybe nobody is to blame at all, but he’ll die before he admits that, because that would, in some twisted way, imply that it’s his fault. And it’s not. He never even asked for this.

So yes, this is Kisumi’s fault. It’s Kisumi’s fault for … Being a nice person. He should be rude to more people and stop making so many friends. Then nobody would come here and nothing would ever happen.

That’s the only thought pushing Ikuya forward to interfere in the intense argument Asahi is currently having with a person he doesn’t know.

Why they’re sharing a table he has no idea, considering that they’ve been going at it since he came here twenty minutes ago, but they’re disturbing the other customers and Serizawa’s has a reputation to uphold.

“You can’t just say that!” Asahi says in a volume that only barely doesn’t qualify as a yell. “First you come here and steal my spot, and then you insult my favourite movie? _A Rat’s Life 3_ is a modern classic!”

The stranger’s smile seems friendly enough, but behind his thick-rimmed glasses, Ikuya swears he sees his eyes sparkle with some sort of morbid amusement. “It came out last year, I doubt we can talk of a modern classic. It’s fine if you enjoyed it, I didn’t expect anything else from someone like you, all I’m saying is that, especially compared to the first two, it was absolutely terrible, and anyone with half a brain could see why.”

They aren’t even noticing him standing there, just by the side of their table. Incredible.

“What do you mean, ‘someone like you’—”

Ikuya clears his throat and Asahi stops mid-sentence to swirls around as far as his chair lets him. “Ikuya!”

“Please stop shouting. There are other customers here. If you keep disturbing them, I’ll have to throw you out.” He just came back from vacation, he isn’t emotionally equipped to deal with this nonsense today.

“I didn’t do anything,” the stranger says with a voice that borders on saccharine. “I was just striking up a friendly conversation.”

Asahi’s attention is swiftly turned back to the argument at hand, and Ikuya finds himself really wanting to leave and never come back. “Friendly conversation my ass! You sat down here because you _knew_ that this is where I usually sit! You’re just provoking me!”

“I sat down here because it’s right by the window and I like the view. This is a public café. Am I breaking any rules?”

“He technically isn’t,” Ikuya mutters under his breath, more to himself. Then, louder, he makes another attempt at doing what he came here to do. “Asahi, if he was here first, just go sit elsewhere. There’s enough free tables. Just quiet down and we won’t have any issue.”

If they were alone, he’d probably be teasing him about it, but they’re not and he feels like he has to keep up his professional façade at least a little bit. He doesn’t know this new person, so he should be making a good first impression.

(That and it’s kind of funny how casually he counters Asahi.)

“I can’t believe you’re turning against me, your lifelong friend—”

“Friend for a year, and only because I had no other choice,” he replies automatically and notices the slip-up in professionalism about half a second too late.

Of course, the stranger picks up on it just as quickly. “See? Even he agrees you’re being insufferable.”

“The only insufferable one here is you!”

And they’re back at it. Of course they are. He’s starting to think that they’re a lost cause.

If anyone could dispel this argument it’d probably be Nao, but Nao isn’t here right now – Natsuya dragged him away right after he brought Ikuya back from their spontaneous one-week vacation to Scotland, to which Ikuya had no way of objecting – and aside from Kisumi, who’s busy actually doing his job and waiting tables, Ikuya is the only one here who could handle it. Except he can’t, because the only thing he has going for him is a pretty decent death stare, which these two don’t seem fazed by.

He’s about a centimetre of patience away from pulling Asahi up by the collar and physically moving him to the free table on the exact opposite site of the café. The only reason he’s not doing it is because that would just freak even more people out, and he’s already noticed many of them staring.

“Listen, both of you. If you have to argue, do it outside.” At this point he’s losing hope that saying anything will dissuade them, though. He’s used to this stubbornness from Asahi, and this new person seems to find great enjoyment in riling him up, making Ikuya’s job all the more complicated.

Instead of listening to him or having any common decency whatsoever, Asahi turns back to him to stare at him intensely. “You’ve seen _A Rat’s Life 3_ too, right? You can tell it was a good movie!”

What even is this argument about?

“Please, don’t try to drag innocent bystanders into this. You’ll only find yourself disappointed.” Yes, the stranger is definitely enjoying this.

“Ikuya, help me out here!”

He stares at them for a blissfully quiet moment of expectation, then sighs as he accepts his fate. “I don’t remember anything from it. The first two were good, but the third one wasn’t memorable in the slightest. The only thing I know of it at this point is that the soundtrack was grating and that I couldn’t stand the love interest, even though I don’t remember why.”

Maybe he should have done this in the first place – Asahi is stunned silent and the stranger is very obviously trying not to laugh.

“I…Ikuya!” Asahi gasps after a while, but nothing else comes out of his mouth.

“You asked me for my opinion, I answered. Now either keep your mouth shut or leave.” He bites his tongue to hold himself back just before he can add a ‘stupid Asahi’ to those sentences.

Maybe he’s being too harsh on him, but which one of them is right and which one is wrong doesn’t matter. He couldn’t care less. He just wants peace and quiet and Asahi is the one who’s yelling, so he doesn’t see why he’d go after the stranger, whose only crime so far has been schadenfreude, really.

In the end, even that doesn’t matter, because said stranger stands up, smile never faltering, and says, “No worries, I was about to leave anyway. Nice running into you again, Shiina!”

“Go fuck yourself, Toono,” Asahi shoots back, and with that, they watch him leave the café and Ikuya still has no idea what is going on.

Is this their way of saying goodbye? Are they secretly best friends?

Ikuya sighs and decides he doesn’t care. “Finally. Okay, can I trust you to behave yourself now? God, I leave you alone for one week and this is what happens.”

“It’s his fault,” Asahi insists, not bothering to elaborate.

“Whatever.” He’s done with this, he’d like to go back to doing his job now, thanks. With another quiet sigh, he turns around and finally heads to the kitchen to start getting properly back into the flow of things.

As soon as he gets there, he sees Kisumi leaning against a fridge, in a conversation with some of the kitchen staff that he interrupts when he notices Ikuya coming in.

“Ikuya, my friend! I can’t hear Asahi yelling anymore, so I’m taking it everything went fine?”

“The other guy left. I don’t know if I had anything to do with it.”

Kisumi’s beaming at him like he enjoyed all of this more than anyone else. “It’s funny, right? If they weren’t so loud I’d just let them be. I think it’s their way of having fun.”

So this has happened before? What exactly went down in the one week he spent in Scotland?

Everything seems taken care of outside, so he figures he might as well ask now. “Who is that person, anyway? I’ve never seen him here before. Asahi called him Toono …”

“Toono Hiyori!” Kisumi finishes for him. “He came here for the first time the Monday after you left, and it looks like he’s gonna become a regular. He took Asahi’s usual spot that Monday and the Wednesday after that, and that Wednesday is when Asahi came in too and they started arguing for some reason. I still don’t really understand it, but he’s a nice guy, despite what Asahi’s gonna tell you.”

Judging from his chipper tone, he really does believe that. It’s not surprising; Ikuya is half convinced the only reason the café is as popular as it is is that everyone keeps coming back to chat with Kisumi. His ability to befriend people is actually kind of scary. Ikuya certainly couldn’t do it.

Before their conversation can continue, he hears the bell by the door ring and finally has something proper to do. He never thought he’d be grateful for that, but there’s a first time for everything, he supposes.

Thankfully, everything else that day goes as it is supposed to, including Asahi staying late to help clean up and walk to the bus station with them as he usually does. Even though he technically doesn’t need to do it, he’s either one of those annoyingly helpful ones or indebted to Kisumi. Ikuya still doesn’t know which. The topic of Toono never comes up, so he assumes it really isn’t as important as it seemed, and with that, it finally feels like he’s back in his daily life again.

When he comes home to his apartment, he immediately flops down on his bed, strangely exhausted. It wasn’t that busy of a day, really, and Natsuya dragging him all across Scotland with little to no sleep was arguably more stressful, but he’s still completely out of energy. He hopes it’s just a temporary thing; he has morning practice tomorrow and can’t afford to slack off. Natsuya already hit the global scene. Ikuya knows he’s not far behind, but the more prepared he is for the next important races the better.

But that’s all for tomorrow, for now he just needs to get a good night’s rest and take a shower. Not in that order.

Even though it feels like more work than anything he’s done all day, he somehow gets himself back up from the bed to do just that, and when he’s done showering he feels so refreshed again he knows it’s going to be difficult to fall asleep. Maybe he should have just passed out right there and showered in the morning. There’s always something, isn’t there?

With what is probably his hundredth sigh today he sits down on the sofa and fishes his phone out of his bag. He hasn’t used it all day, which isn’t normally a problem considering that the only people to ever text him are Kisumi, who he saw today, and Natsuya, but since the latter just disappeared on another vacation, he’s probably spammed him with pictures and impressions of the place already, as he tends to do.

Ikuya stares at the red bubble reading _99+_ on his message app and decides he’s not even going to bother.

Instead he pulls up the blog he likes to read to check if there’s any new posts, and sure enough, he missed two while he was gone.

To be honest, Ikuya doesn’t really care about cafés. He works in one because Nao asked him to and saying no to Nao feels like breaking the law, and it’s close to his university so it’s convenient, plus it pays pretty well for a part-time job, but he’s not there because he’s passionate about it or anything. In fact, he can’t remember a time where he went into a café because he felt like it rather than because he had business in it.

So he’s not really sure how he got attached to this café blog. He thinks Kisumi told him pretty early on that it looked like the person running it was in the area, so they should make sure they’re aware of them – even though their blog isn’t super popular, they’ve garnered a bit of a following, and if they gave Serizawa’s a bad review it definitely wouldn’t be good for them.

He’d wanted to read one article out of obligation if nothing else, but found himself really enjoying the way everything is written, and he’s been a regular ever since. It’s a bit of a ritual to check it every evening and see if there’s something new; he’s not much into reading but this feels a bit more personal, so he likes it.

Recently he’s started commenting too and it turns out the owner is actually really nice. They’ve had some small conversations under posts, since Ikuya does actually know quite a bit about the inner workings now and can tell them some things they might not be aware of, and he finds he likes talking to them. Even though he still doesn’t know their name or age or gender or … Anything, really; they just go by their blog name and they never show photos of themselves. At least he knows they’re in university like him, which is something, he supposes.

The newest article is on a kind of drink he’s never seen before, one that sparkles in all colours of the rainbow and is apparently delicious. He wonders if they could make something like this at Serizawa’s, but the post doesn’t tell him much about what exactly it is. Maybe he can show Kisumi.

The one before that, though, that was published during his vacation when he didn’t have the time or energy to look at his phone for longer than a minute, is more of an update post. Most of the things he doesn’t really care about, but it does note there’ll be fewer posts for a while because the owner wants to focus more on studies. Considering that it’s already the middle of November (not that it feels like it, it’s way too warm for that time of year), it’s probably a smart plan, but he finds himself a bit disappointed anyway.

He scrolls down to comment a quick _good luck on exams_ , but that’s pretty much it and now he really doesn’t have anything to do.

Now he’s not tired anymore though. A glance at the top of the screen reveals it’s just past 9pm, which is a bit early either way, so he stands back up and opens his fridge in the hopes that there’s something edible inside.

There isn’t. Of course there isn’t. He knew that, but somehow he’d hoped something would magically appear if he believed in it enough.

He closes the fridge door.

Then opens it again to check once more, just in case. Still nothing.

He did eat on the way home, but he could go for a snack right now … But he also doesn’t feel like going out to the convenience store to buy anything. Maybe he can order takeout? Or would that be too much …

He sits back down on the couch with no decision or purpose on his mind.

God, he’s bored. Scotland was exhausting, but Natsuya dragging him around and pestering him all the time in the hotel room was fun, too, even though he probably won’t admit that to him in case he decides to up the ante. He could see him getting the wrong idea and planning out something way too grandiose for one poor university student with a limited amount of energy. Travelling around the highlands to every loch they could reasonably and unreasonably fit into one day ‘just in case there’s monsters in there, Ikuya, you never know’ was already very close to the limits of his patience. He passed out in the car seat as soon as Natsuya decided they’d finally had enough.

He grabs his phone again and taps on the post he just commented on, hoping to whatever deity may be out there that he got a reply because otherwise he’ll have to resort to texting Kisumi and that’s his last choice in any given scenario.

Thankfully, the gods have listened to him. _Thanks!_ the message reads. _You too, you’ve got exams coming up too, right?_

Ah, nice, an actual conversation starter. He doesn’t know how else he would have continued. _yes but I’m not worried, I’ll do fine_ , he writes back. It’s true. He’s been doing surprisingly well in school, even with swimming and the café. If he has problems with something, Nao usually helps him, sometimes even Kisumi or Asahi.

Now that he’s writing that, the thought comes to mind that the person running the blog probably knows more about Ikuya than Ikuya does about them, even if he’s the one reading their blog. They know that he’s in his second year of university, that he works at a café, that he studies English, and … Heck, even that he’s a guy. Is he too talkative? He never thought of himself that way, and it’s not like they’ve had _many_ conversations, it’s just easy to talk to them. Something about the anonymity, he supposes. He only goes by his initials online, everything else sounds like too much of a hassle.

Even though it’s not all that unlikely for them to meet. Maybe they have already met, actually. Since they’re in the area and he’s a waiter at a fairly popular café …

When he thinks about it, it’s more likely for them to _have_ met.

But they’ve never written about Serizawa’s, so they probably haven’t after all. Maybe someday. He’d kind of like to meet them, but he fears that would destroy the illusion, too.

In the end, it doesn’t really matter. They’d never recognise each other anyway.

 _I’m sure you will, but good luck anyway. Tell me how they went when you’re done!_ comes the eventual reply and he smiles to himself. That’s something Natsuya or Kisumi would say.

_I will. thank you._

So much for having a proper conversation. He’s not good at this. But he does feel a little bit better now, as he usually does after talking to them. He’s not even sure why, maybe that, too, is the anonymity’s fault; he barely knows this person, so it’s easy to imagine them just the way he wants to, even if they’re really not like that at all.

Which … Kind of makes them sound like his emotional punching bag. Never mind that.

But now he’s bored again. That didn’t last long.

Today’s just not his kind of day, is it?

 

* * *

 

It’s early. Too early. Ikuya went to bed not long after he ran out of things to do and actually did get some good sleep despite having just switched time zones, but that doesn’t mean he wanted to wake up at 4am, unable to fall back asleep.

Restless as he was, he went for a run. He always liked doing that back when he was still living on the countryside, with the stars splattered all across the night sky above him, but this is Tokyo and light pollution likes to ruin his fun. It’s still nicer than running in broad daylight, he supposes.

Now, Ikuya’s not entirely sure how he ended up at Serizawa’s, but his body was working on autopilot and this is a route he just happens to be used to; he usually takes the bus, but sometimes he runs there or back if he wants to get some more practice in. Depending on his daily form, it can take everything from half an hour up to a full one, but right now it’s almost 5am on the dot and he doesn’t really care either way as long as he gets to take a break.

The café is open 24/7, but he’s not really familiar with the staff working night shifts, so it kind of feels like a different place altogether. It’s almost empty, too, aside from him there’s just a tired-looking girl typing on her laptop and yawning every minute or so. Looks like she’s close to the deadline for a project she procrastinated, otherwise she’d be in bed, like reasonable people who aren’t Ikuya.

He orders a hot chocolate just because he feels like he has to get something or else he should leave, and at this time of day it actually feels like November outside, even if he’s warmed up from running. What he’ll do after that he hasn’t decided yet. Probably go back to his apartment to get ready for morning practice.

It’s about as interesting as it sounds. One of the reasons he doesn’t go to cafés in his off time unless someone explicitly invited him is that he could much rather be doing something more captivating instead. He can get cake and sweet drinks at the supermarket and if he wants to study, he’ll do it in the library where it’s quiet.

So he’s sitting there scrolling through his phone even though nothing of note is happening there either and occasionally taking a sip of hot chocolate – which is high-quality at least, not that he would have been okay with anything else; this is the place he works at, they’d better offer the best they can …

And that’s when the door opens and Toono walks in.

Ikuya’s first thought is _Asahi isn’t here, so why is he?_ , then he remembers that he has his own life independent from arguing with Asahi. He thinks. Not that he knows anything about him other than that he has better taste in movies than his friend. Maybe his entire existence _does_ revolve around Asahi.

His second thought is _Should I talk to him?_ They’re technically acquaintances … Are they? He normally doesn’t bother talking to people unless they talk to him first, but anyone who comes to a café at 5 in the morning and isn’t desperately trying to finish a paper is at least some shade of interesting.

His thought process never gains any more traction, because in that moment Toono turns around and spots him, looks at him for a second with a surprised look on his face before he switches back to a slightly less shit-eating version of the smile he saw him wearing yesterday and heads for Ikuya’s table.

“Mind if I sit here?”

Well, at least it gets rid of his dilemma. “No problem.”

Truth be told, he doesn’t really know why Toono would want to talk to him, but it’s early and it’d seem strange to ask. Knowing Kisumi, he probably told him all about him, so that must be it. (Ikuya’s still not sure how his co-worker knows so many details of his private life, but he suspects a drunk Natsuya might be involved.)

A waiter – he thinks her name is Hanamura but he genuinely doesn’t remember, he might be confusing her for kitchen staff – stops by the table, Toono orders a coffee, and then they sit there in silence for a little bit until he finally says something. “So, are you a friend of Shiina’s?”

Not for the first time since he came back, he thanks his life for being kind enough to give him conversation starters. “Yeah. He’s friends with Kisumi, so he kind of … Forced himself into my life, I guess. Why?”

“Oh, I don’t know. I was a little curious, since you two seemed so close.” Ikuya can’t read his smile at all – not that he’s good at reading people in the first place – but he has no reason to assume it’s not genuine, so he decides he’s fine with this.

“I don’t know if we’re close. We’re just used to each other at this point, and it’s fun to tease him.” He stops, contemplates for a second, and adds, “We might be kind of close, actually. He’s a good friend. Don’t tell him I said that.”

He laughs quietly, though it still seems too loud in the relative silence of the café. “Don’t worry, I won’t. I get what you mean though, it’s funny how riled up he gets.”

“So you were doing that on purpose.”

“Of course,” he replies, and it kind of makes Ikuya smile too. He gets where he’s coming from.

“And you two are …”

“Archenemies, obviously.” Something about his tone makes him think that’s as far as he’ll get about that topic. Maybe he’s just not meant to know what exactly their relationship is. Did they know each other before this? Maybe they’re in competing clubs.

“Do you swim, Toono-kun?” he asks without thinking. “Competitively, I mean.”

He blinks at him for a moment, clearly taken aback, before saying, “Uh, no, not anymore. I used to in junior high, back when I lived in America … Where did that come from?”

Right. Of course. “Asahi does, so I guess I kind of thought … But if you did, I’d definitely have known. Because I do too, I mean …” Wow, he made that awkward.

“Oh, okay, that makes sense,” Toono thankfully says. “It’s amazing that you keep with it though, I hear university practice is brutal.”

“It is, but I’m aiming for the global stage, so it has to be.” And he’ll get there. He’ll join Natsuya there – in due time.

“I’ll have to watch out for you when I’m watching competitions then – Kirishima, was it?”

“Kirishima Ikuya. Just Ikuya is fine.” Maybe it’s because of the strict first-name-only policy his brother drilled into him at their swim clubs in school or maybe just because having two Kirishimas around is confusing, but he always preferred people using his first name. He still hasn’t managed to break that to his teammates at his new club, though, and it’s been over a year.

“Alright then, it’s Ikuya and Hiyori?”

“Yeah,” he says with a smile he can’t shake. It’s been a while since he last had this easy of a time talking to someone new. Maybe they can actually be friends. “Kisumi said you’ll become a regular?”

“Probably. The food is good, the staff is nice, and I get to argue with Shiina.”

“Seriously, what are you two?” he mutters, not expecting an answer. “As long as you don’t disturb the customers …”

“Hey, he did that, not me.”

“It’s partly your fault.”

“Oh, those little details …”

They talk for a little more – he finds out that he’s here this early because, much like himself, he couldn’t fall back asleep and needed something to do, that he’s a fellow second year, that he’s studying literature, and that he goes to a small university Ikuya has never heard of – until he’s done with his hot chocolate and takes it as a sign to go back home to get ready.

Saying “see you” feels good somehow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> in a surprise turn of events, Ikuya actually managed to make a friend. be proud of him

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading!!
> 
> please consider donating happy Hiyoris to my [Free! Tumblr](http://toono-hiyori.tumblr.com)


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